Naruto: Tsumujikaze
by GreenEyesStaring
Summary: On the brink of the 4th Great Ninja War, the Village of Konoha rests in a tense peace. In this awkward calm, Hatake Reiko, daughter of Hatake Kakashi and Mitarashi Anko, is appointed Jonin instructor to three interesting Genin. Will history repeat itself?
1. Assignment Day! History Repeats Itself!

A Future Fic!! By me!

Disclaimer: I don not own Naruto, and even if I wish upon every star in the sky until I'm blue in the face, I never will. (So far) I only own Reiko, Masaru, Satoshi, and Sasori.

So, now that the legal stuff is over and done with, on with the story! It would be awesome if you read and reviewed.

* * *

She stood near the back of the room, her usual lingering place when it came to meetings like this. It's not that she wanted to look like she could care less, or give the idea that she was being disrespectful towards Hokage-sama, it was just easier to hear things in the back – you know, because of the better acoustics. 

The meeting was concerning the newly-graduated Academy Genin who needed Jonin proctors. She had put her name down as a candidate on the sign-up sheet a few meetings ago, but had never really expected to get called back. Oh, well.

The meeting was just about over. The Hokage was tying things up about how the new Genin would meet their appointed Jonin next week and to please not to be late. In the corner, the girl got the weirdest feeling that the Hokage eyeballed her when he said that, but she shrugged it off.

"On your way out, take a copy of your team's sheet," he said. _Poor Naruto-sama_, she thought. _He looks as bored as hell, sitting there behind the table._ "That'll be it for tonight's meeting. Thanks for coming." He pounded a little gavel on the table and got up.

The girl could only smirk at the smile that formed on Naruto's face as soon as he said the meeting was over. Naruto was a great leader and protector, but when it came to sitting in for meetings, he tended to get bored. Having been his student for a few years, she was lucky enough to know Naruto better than most of the teenagers of her generation.

She stuffed her hands in her pockets and lingered by the wall for a moment while the hall emptied out. Once all the foot traffic was cleared, she headed out the door.

"Looking for this, Reiko-chan?"

"Hm?" The girl looked up. The Hokage was holding up the sheet with her team assignment on it. "What's up, Naruto-sama?"

"Nothing much," he said with a smile. "I was just checking out your team's sheet. You've got an interesting selection of pupils."

"Really now?" She swiped the sheet from his hand and read through the list. "Well, well, this _is_ an interesting match-up. I bet _you_ fixed this up just to give yourself a laugh, didn't you, Naruto-sama?"

"I swear I had nothing to do with this match-up," Naruto said. "You can take that up with the teachers over at the Academy. _They're_ the ones who paired up the teams."

"Dad will get a kick out of this. He's the one who told me to sign up for instructor." She stuffed the list into her back pouch. "I should get home, then."

"Right," Naruto-sama said. She gave him a small salute before taking off home. "Say hello to Kakashi-sensei for me!"

* * *

_My name, as you've probably guessed by now, is Reiko. I'm sixteen years old and currently a Jonin in Konohakagure. I'm a bit of a prodigy around here, but it's not like Jonin at sixteen has never been done before. Mostly, though, the talent's genetic. _

_You see, I'm the daughter of Hatake Kakashi and Mitarashi Anko. I'm Hatake Reiko. Yeah, from what I hear, not too many people in Konoha could believe it, either. _

_How exactly did two of the most solitary ninja in all of Konoha end up together? It really was a question for the ages. I mean, neither of them had an obvious parental streak back in the day, nor were they itching to jump into a long, committed relationship. But the answer to how they got together is simple: sake. _

_Oh, yeah – it was nothing but a big, drunken mess that led to my accidental conception and their eventual coming together. Some time ago, Pops has told me they had decided to stay together for my sake. But deep down, I know it was for love. I mean, sixteen years later and they're still sharing a bed is more than just "staying together for the kid", don't you think? But those two are incredibly stubborn when it comes to admitting someone else is right. _

_It doesn't matter to me, really, because I live with them, and it's easy for me to see that those two love each other.

* * *

_

In the dark night, she made her way home. If there was one thing Reiko loved, it was taking dark walks around the village. Sure, almost every business was closed, but that's what made it peaceful. The only real way to clear her mind was to walk around aimlessly for some time. Reiko figured it was something she inherited from her father.

She approached her building and picked up the pace. Something smelled good, and it was coming from her apartment. Reiko dug her key out of her back pouch and opened the front door - to find something come sailing in her direction.

"Hit the deck!" she shouted, ducking the projectile. Something clattered in the walkway outside the door. From the metal _clang_ the unidentified flying object produced, Reiko guessed it was some kind of kitchen utensil. Carefully, she looked up into the small apartment to see a pot of something simmering on the stove, and both her parents standing in the kitchen; Reiko's best guess was that the utensil lying in the walkway was a ladle, as for why it was lying there, though, was up for grabs. "Yo, I'm home."

"Oh, Reiko, you're home earlier than I thought you would be. How was the meeting?" Kakashi asked as calmly as if a ladle hadn't just flown over his head.

"Look what you made me do, Kakashi! I could have hit Reiko!"

"It's a blunt object," he responded calmly. "She would have survived. Luckily, the kid can duck."

"Yeah, lucky me," Reiko said, shuffling into the apartment with the offensive utensil in her hand.

"Why was the meeting so short?" Anko asked. She was trying to take a jar of spices out of Kakashi's hand, but failing because Kakashi's hand extended arm was too high for her to reach.

"Oh, you know Naruto-sama," Reiko responded, throwing off her black ninja sandals. "The guy can't sit still for too long. Since there was nothing formal about the meeting, I guess he wanted it to be as quick as humanly possible."

"That sounds like Naruto," Kakashi said, moving the spice jar away from Anko's outstretched hand. "Short and simple when it comes to complicated things."

"Some things never change," Anko muttered, giving up trying to take the jar away from Kakashi and turning back to the stove. "Reiko, don't eat too many of those."

"I won't," the girl assured her, wondering how in the world Anko had seen her pop a rice cracker into her mouth. She took the small bowl of crackers off the counter and took a seat at the table. She called to Kakashi, who was busy dumping the contents of the jar into the simmering pot. "Hey, Pops, weren't you on a mission?"

"Don't you want your old man at home?"

"Ah, don't put words in my mouth," Reiko said, taking another cracker. "All I meant is that you got back early; I thought you'd be gone another two days, at least."

"Mission ended earlier than anticipated," he replied. "The guy we were looking for was assassinated before we could capture him."

"Really? By who?"

Kakashi shrugged, "I don't know. I think it might have been a hired killer; the job was clean and fast."

"You didn't chase after him?"

"We didn't know what to expect from this guy," he said. "I wasn't going to risk my team for the sake of curiosity. If it had been just me, I'd have gone after him. I couldn't go in blind with the team."

"What? Was your team full of newbies?"

"My team was two Chunin," he said, running a hand through his hair. "Don't get me wrong, they're skilled, but I don't think I could trust them with an impromptu mission like that."

"Any idea who the hired hand might me?"

"I'll have to check my bingo book, but, the truth is-"

"Alright, you two, enough talk about missions," Anko interrupted. She swiped the bowl of crackers away from Reiko, producing a small groan of protest from the girl. "We see enough violence out there to last us all day; we don't have to bring it home with us. Let's just sit down and eat."

Kakashi smiled, "Who would have thought those words would _ever _come out of Mitarashi Anko's mouth?"

"Shut up, Kakashi," she said.

Reiko couldn't help but laugh at them. For being adults, it was nice to know they hadn't lost their sense of humor. There really was never a dull moment around these parts. "So, what exactly caused the sudden ladle-throwing?"

"Your father said my curry was bland," Anko muttered, stirring the pot furiously.

"You asked for my opinion, and I gave it to you," Kakashi answered. "It's not my fault you couldn't handle the truth. Besides, you didn't have to get so violent."

"Let's see you make a better curry, then" Anko taunted.

"I did," Kakashi retorted. He slopped some curry from the pot onto a plate of rice and placed it on the table in front of Anko. "Try that."

Anko picked up her fork and poked the curry dish gingerly. She forked up a bit and ate it.

"Well?" There was a satisfied look on Kakashi's face.

"Yeah, you're right," Anko said, taking another mouthful. "This stuff ­_is_ good." She put the fork down. "Well, are you two going to sit down or not? I'm hungry."

"Mom and food," Reiko said, shaking her head. "Don't come between them."

"Yeah," Kakashi nodded. He handed Reiko her own plate before serving himself some curry. "Good thing I can cook."

"You'd never guess that from looking at you," Anko teased.

Kakashi sat down at the table, ignoring Anko's last comment. "So, Reiko, how'd the meeting turn out?"

"Oh, that's right!" Reiko pulled the list from her pouch, eagerly showing it to Kakashi. "Pops, guess who's the new leader of cell seven?"

"Really?" Kakashi's only visible eye lit up.

"Another Hatake at the head of cell seven?" Anko asked.

"Hells yeah," Reiko said. "And if it weren't funny enough, my assigned students are Uzumaki Masaru and the Uchiha twins – Sasori and Satoshi."

"Iruka must have been really bored," Kakashi said, reading the list over again. "Either that, or this is one hell of a coincidence."

"It wouldn't be the first time history repeated itself," Anko said. "When's your first session?"

"Next week," Reiko replied. "But it's just the intro meeting. After that, I need to think up of some training exercises."

"Any ideas?" Kakashi asked.

"None yet," Reiko said. "Maybe I'll be unoriginal and open the training with your bell exercise. Or, I've had something in mind, but…Oh, heck, I don't have to worry about that for another week, so…let's eat!"

Anko shook her head at Reiko's lack of concern. "She's definitely your daughter, Kakashi."

"Don't act as if you've never procrastinated before," Kakashi said. He smiled slyly. "Besides, there's nothing _wrong_ with being like me."

"I never said there was," Anko said, returning the smile. She leaned across the table and slipped her finger through the top of Kakashi's mask, leaning in.

"I'm gonna go wash my hands," Reiko announced rather loudly before making her way down the hall into the bathroom. She ran the water, shaking her head with a smile. "Those two are worse than teenagers. I'm a teenager, I would know." She shut off the water, hoping that the two at the table were done messing around.

Reiko leaned against the sink, heaving a sigh. _I guess I'm loitering in the bathroom, now. Great._ _I know they're my parents, and they've got as much right to make out as anyone, but in the kitchen? Could they at take it into their room? Then again…Even though they've been together for sixteen years, I'm the only kid they ever had, and the only kid they'll ever have, if you catch my drift._

She turned to look at herself in the mirror. She brushed some bangs out of her eyes. When it came to her hair, only two words came to mind: genetically screwed.

Reiko figured that, on both sides, she was bound to come out with funny-looking hair. _Pop's hair stands up like a paint brush, while mom's hair has been said to look like a chicken ass on more than one occasion._ Hers was sort of a mix between those two. She wore it in a ponytail and, as expected, it fanned out like Anko's. Then there was the color of her hair:

At the root, Reiko's hair was the same gray-blue color as Anko's. Most of her hair was that color…up until the ends of her hair – those were silver, like Kakashi's hair. The silver outline around the edge of her hair caused new acquaintances to look twice, but Reiko couldn't complain about it. She tapped the metal on her headband.

_Hm…Hatake Reiko: Jonin Instructor! Yeah, the title's not the best thing I've ever heard, either. _

The truth was that she was a bit nervous about having the responsibility of three young Genin thrust at her. It was up to her to make sure the kids developed their skills to the best of their abilities. Well, it wasn't all up to her, but her training would help shape the kind of shinobi they would become.

_Woot. I love responsibility. _

"Reiko, you only have two hands," Anko called.

"I'm coming," Reiko replied. "Sorry, I was thinking about something."

"Nervous, aren't you?" Kakashi said.

"A bit," she said, falling into her chair. "It's an odd sort of pressure you don't get when going off on a mission. But why worry now, right?"

"Just don't put it off until the last minute," Anko warned, knowing full well that was exactly was Reiko was going to do.

* * *

And so, Meet-Your-Genin Day finally came around, and Rieko, thinking of nothing better in the last five minutes, left for the Academy with a soccer ball tucked under her arm, and one homemade lunch in her backpack. 

She didn't know what her plan for these kids was. She wanted them to respect her, that was for sure, but she didn't want them to be scared of her. She had thought about how she'd introduce herself late the night before, and had come up with an elaborate and noisy entrance, but at the last minute, she decided the Academy couldn't afford a new window just yet.

"Good morning, Reiko," Iruka called from the door. "You're early."

"Of all the things I inherited from my father," Reiko explained on her way past. "A knack for tardiness isn't one of them."

Reiko stopped outside of the door where her Genin charges were waiting. To be honest, she didn't really know any of them. Despite the fact that Naruto had been her Jonin instructor, Reiko hadn't really gotten to know Masaru as well as she would have liked. As for the Uchiha twins, well, she knew their names and that was about it. Sure, she'd seen all three kids around the village and talked to them once in a while, but she had never seen their skills or _really_ talked to them.

"Well, here goes," Reiko said to herself. She grabbed the door handle and slid it open. All three Genin were in the room, sitting in different parts of the stands. Reiko waved. "Yo."

"Hey, what's up, Reiko?" Uzumaki Masaru called from his seat. The boy, like his old man before him, looked just like his father - a shock of bright yellow hair and blue eyes encased in mischief. Even their sense of style was the same. Masaru stood wearing a bright orange T-shirt with the leaf emblem on the front and khaki shorts down to his knees.

"Don't be so familiar, Masaru-kun," Uchiha Sasori called from behind him. The girl crossed her arms over her chest, smiling widely at Masaru. Black bangs fell over her forehead protector and her jet-black hair fell to her shoulders. Her eyes, like her mother's, reflected certain warmth in them. "She'll kick your ass if you step out of line."

"Aw, she could try," Masaru said. "Satoshi and I could beat her up, right, Satoshi?"

"Right!" Uchiha Satoshi called. He stood up to emphasize his point. Satoshi's eyes – black, Uchiha eyes – stared with determination at Masaru. He looked like a younger version of Sasuke, except for the spiked hair and those very faint lines under his eyes that reminded Reiko of Uchiha Itachi. "We'd use our Super Uchiha Uzumaki Rendan!"

"Alright, that's enough out of you three," Reiko said. "Alright, we'll start with the oldest thing in the book: introduce yourselves. You know, likes, dislikes, goals…all that jazz. Oh, and something about yourself – something interesting. Starting with the young lady."

She toggled her headband before starting, "My name is Uchiha Sasori, I'm twelve years old. I like training and I train every afternoon with my dad and younger sister. I also like water colors. I don't like having to share a room with my younger sister because she gets scared at night and crawls into my bed. I don't like it when Mom makes _natto_, either. An interesting fact about me is that I know every type of poison produced by every type of plant in this region, and I know which ones can kill you the fastest. My goal for the future is that I want to become the next chief of the Uchiha Police Force!"

Reiko's eyebrows went up in amusement. _Kid's got spunk. Alright._ "How 'bout, you, Satoshi?"

"Right," he said. "I'm Uchiha Satoshi, also twelve years old. I like to run around, and mostly jump from roof to roof. I also like reading _manga_ and playing with my best friend, Masaru. I don't like training with my Dad because he takes the fun away from training and then I can't enjoy it. Something interesting about me is that I have been able to use my Sharingan eye since I was six! My goal for the future is to become the strongest ABNU ever – even stronger than my Dad, or even Hatake Kakashi."

_Good luck with that,_ Reiko said, feeling very proud of her father all of sudden. "That's pretty interesting. And finally, Masaru."

"Yeah, yeah," he said. "I'm Uzumaki Masaru! I'm twelve years old and the next greatest ninja of Konohakagure! I like hanging out with my dad on the weekends and I love sparring with him when I get the chance. I also like sparring with Satoshi and making up new jutsu with him! What I don't like is that everyone always says I'm 'just the son of the Hokage.' It makes me mad. I also don't like when my little brother wets the bed 'cause then I'm the one who has to take the mattress out to dry. Oh, and I _hate_ ramen; that makes my dad feel sad, I dunno why. Something interesting about me is that I can stand on my head and whistle at the same time. My goal is for people to know me for something else other than just being the Hokage's son. Yeah!"

_Well, they're an interesting bunch, to say the least,_ Reiko thought. She bounced the soccer ball. "Alright, now that introductions are out of the way, let's get going -"

"Hey, now wait a minute," Masaru said. He pointed an incriminating finger at Reiko. "We introduced ourselves, and it's only polite that _you_ introduce yourself next."

"Yeah, sensei, introduce yourself," Sasori said.

"Fair enough," Reiko said, catching the ball in her hands. "What to say … well, my name is Hatake Reiko, I'm sixteen years old. I like quiet things, but I don't mind noise. Um, I don't dislike too many things, but the things that I _do_ dislike I dislike for a reason. I don't really think I have an ultimate goal for the future, but if I ever think of one, I don't think I'd tell you. Hm…something interesting about me is that, on my left foot, I'm missing part of my second toe – but no one ever notices unless I tell them. Great, _now_ that intros are out of the way, let's get a move on."

Reiko looked at the bemused faces of her three students. Masaru craned his neck to catch a better glimpse at Reiko's feet. She turned around, heading out of the room.

"Hey, hey," Masaru asked. He clamored out into the hall. "How'd you lose your toe?"

Reiko smiled to herself.

* * *

"Why are we out here?" Satoshi raised his hand. "This is a soccer field." 

"I'm giving you three a task." She threw the soccer ball down onto the field. "I'm in the mood to play some soccer. All you have to do is score one goal. Easy, right? Whoever scores the goal gets to eat a homemade lunch. While the rest of us have cup ramen and natto. Think of this as part two of our little icebreaker."

Reiko stood in the goal, hearing the resolutions coming out the Genin's mouths.

"No way I'm eating natto,"

"Cup ramen … why the hell is it always cup ramen?"

_Worked like a charm,_ Reiko thought happily. Truth be told, the excersize she had thought of that morning had been a little different, but now that she knew a little about her students, Reiko mixed the training program up a bit.

"Alright, you three," she called. She extended her hands on the sides, making sure to guard the goal. She wasn't brilliant at soccer, but she was good at guarding things. One and one makes two, right? "Time to show me what you've got!"

"Right!" Masaru took the center forward position. "I'm gonna score that goal! Just you watch!"

As the boy charged forward with the ball at his feet while his teammates chased after him, Reiko's eyes narrowed. _Mistake number one.

* * *

Well, that was chapter one. Thanks for reading, and please review. If you didn't like it, I promise chapter two won't suck as much._

-Greeneyesstaring


	2. Soccer sellout! Rivals at Ichiraku!

**Hiya! I see the story got some hits...but no reviews...hm. I don't mind too much, but some input from the audience would be appriciated, you know?**

**Okay, this is a spolier alert. There is a spolier from the Naruto Shipuuden manga later on in this chapter. It's one of those spoilers that I can simply tell you to read over 'cause it's a part of the story. For those of you who already know, read ahead. For those who don't know but don't care about being spoiled, read ahead. And for those of you who don't know and don't like being spoiled...read ahead, anyway. I've put in so much stuff you'll probably not know what the spolier is even if you read it six times.**

**Oh, right...Disclaimer: Don't own it, never will. I own Reiko.**

**Now, on with the second chapter of Naruto: Tsumujikaze!! Please review!!**

* * *

The warm summer sun shone onto the face of Hokage Mountain, brightly accenting the carved faces into the mountainside. The latest addition to the collection of chiseled stone heads was the one of the young man who had for so long wanted the village to look up to him – Rokudaime Hokage Uzumaki Naruto. After years of working hard to gain the approval of everyone in Konohakagure, Naruto finally proved it by saving the village from certain destruction. It was shortly after that, Tsunade had stepped down from the charge of Hokage and gladly passed it down to Naruto.

He was the youngest Hokage ever when he started, but he did a good job of taking care of his village. Even after all these years, Naruto still had that impulsive drive for mischief inside of him. But rather than take said impulse out on the Hokage monument like he had so many times in his youth, the older Naruto satisfied his craving for mischief by running out of the office – it drove his advisors crazy.

_I simply can't be expected to sit in that stuffy office on a day as beautiful as this one,_ he thought. He stood on the railing directly under the carved stone, admiring the tribute to Konoha's great leaders. It really was humbling to sit and stare at them for a while. _But not for too long,_ Naruto decided. He heard the quick steps of people down in the office. _Looks like they've found out I'm gone…_

A smile crossed the blond man's lips as he easily bounded from the railing onto the street. He heard the door to the roof burst open and one of his advisors, it sounded like Yusuke, call to him. Naruto was already on his way down the street.

Honestly, Naruto had been waiting all day to leave the office. Masaru started his actual ninja training today. Remembering his own first trail down the path of the ninja, Naruto was curious to see how his son would fare. He was still laughing at the thought of Hatake Reiko being assigned as Masaru's Jonin instructor. Destiny, as Hyuga Neji had said once (and only once, mind you…and he vowed never to say it again) can be a funny thing.

"Cutting work again, Naruto?" an amused voice called from the side.

"Not cutting, more like taking a longer than average five-minute break," Naruto returned. "You would know a little something about that; wouldn't you, Kakashi-sensei?"

"Well…" the Jonin trailed off. He stuck his hands in his pockets and walked alongside Naruto. "Going off to the Academy, weren't you?"

"You know me too well," Naruto said, shaking his head. "I'm just a bit curious to see how Masaru's doing on the first day of training. It was a bit of an eye-opener for me back then."

"I remember that day," Kakashi mused. "You three were still wet-behind-the-ears." He stared up into the blue sky, and sighing deeply, "Boy, how time has gone by. When you think about it, it's kind of overwhelming."

"You sound like an old man, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto taunted. It wasn't like his teacher at all to reminisce like this. "It hasn't been all that long."

Kakashi smiled through his permanent mask, "When you have a lot of time to think about things, you realize otherwise. It's been eighteen years since I was appointed your instructor, Naruto. Eighteen whole years."

"Really?" Naruto said. "It hasn't felt like eighteen years to me. I mean, between the final battle with Orochimaru, Sasuke coming back, becoming Hokage…it's been like a blur to me, you know?"

Kakashi laughed, "If you had told me back then that in eighteen years I'd have a sixteen-year-old daughter and be living with Anko, I'd have died laughing. It's funny how wrong you can be about the future sometimes."

"Speaking of Reiko," Naruto said with a sly smile. "You're on the way to see her right now, aren't you?"

"At least I'm not cutting work to do so," Kakashi replied. He nodded to the Academy building up the road. "I'm interested to see just how many of my teachings she's taken to heart."

"If she's your daughter," Naruto said, a worried sort of voice coming over him. "Then she's probably taken those teachings to heart and made them even harsher. Truth be told, I sort of feel sorry for Masaru."

"If he's anything like you, then I'm sure he'll be able to pull through," Kakashi said with a smile. "If he's lucky, that is."

* * *

"I'm going to score that goal! Just you watch!" 

Masaru came charging down the field, a determined look on his young face. "There's no way I'll end up eating ramen!" His resolution rang out across the field with a fierce sense of promise.

Reiko shook her head at the boy's rash move. _Mistake number one._ She braced herself for the goal, not really worried that it would be coming at all. Behind Masaru, the equally-determined Sasori caught up with him. _And this is where it gets interesting._

Without blinking, the girl stuck her foot out in front of Masaru. The ball sailed to the left, where Satoshi passed it back to Sasori; Masaru tripped over the girl's outstretched leg. The surprised boy could do nothing but fall flat on his face as Sasori passed him with the ball dribbling at her feet.

"That's cheating!" Masaru's angry cry rang out. "You're cheating, Sasori-chan! You can't just trip people because you want the ball!"

"A ninja's gotta be willing to do whatever it takes to reach the objective," Sasori called coolly as she ran off toward the goal.

A red flag went up in Reiko's head at hearing the girl's words. _Hm…she's defiantly Uchiha Sasuke's daughter. I'm going to have to implement some of Pop's teamwork speeches into this little exercise…on top of everything else. _

Out of the corner of her eye, Reiko noticed the Uchiha boy. Satoshi was standing quietly in the middle of the field, his face reflecting deep thought. _What the hell is that one doing all the way out there? _

"Better pay attention over here, sensei!"

_Mistake number two._ Reiko knew which way the ball was coming from without even having to take her eyes off of Satoshi. Exerting the merest of effort, Reiko deflected the ball and it settled in her hands. For a moment, she considered ending the practice here, but decided that it was too early to call the match just yet. She heaved the ball back onto the field without a word.

It sailed over the head of all three Genin. Masaru ran after it with Sasori in hot pursuit. Being the slightest bit taller than Masaru, Sasori's longer legs carried the girl toward the ball faster than Masaru's did him.

"You're not getting away with it that easily." Masaru warned. He sped up, passing Sasori. "Take this!" He formed his fingers into a familiar hand-sign. "Bunshin no Jutsu!" In a cloud of smoke, three exact replicas of Masaru appeared on the field. "Go, Bunshins!"

Two of the three replicas turned, tackling Sasori into the ground and holding her fast. "Hey, now _that's _cheating!"

Masaru cleared his throat loudly, "A ninja's gotta be willing to do whatever it takes to reach the objective, Sasori-chan." He ran past with the ball between his feet. "That goal is mine. Yeah!"

Reiko watched the small episode unfold in amusement. Masaru's Bunshin technique was nowhere near as impressive as his father's Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, but it wasn't bad for a newly-graduated Genin. She gave the boy points for clever use of the technique.

"Here's my shot. Double Uzumaki Kick!" Masaru kicked the ball to his remaining clone and shot up the field. "Now!" The clone kicked the ball high into the air, where Masaru jumped to meet it. He did a small back flip, kicking the ball downward toward the goal at a high speed.

"Nice try, kid," Reiko said. "Your hit has power and speed, but no technique. I can see through it like glass." Sure enough, the ball sailed straight for her, so all Reiko had to do was block it. She caught it with both hands, a bit surprised at the strength behind the kick.

"It missed?" Masaru asked. "But it was such a strong kick! How did you block it so easily?"

Reiko twirled the ball in her hands. "Strong kick, yes…but here's a little tip: It doesn't matter how strong a jutsu is if it's as easy to see through as that. Attacking head-on is proof that you're underestimating your opponent. You're wasting chakara when you do this. All that energy wasted on a move that was easy to stop…not the smartest thing to do. You'll waste all your chakara and die before the battle even gets started."

"Don't you know anything?" Sasori came up behind Masaru. She lifted a finger in the air. "Chakara control is one of the most important things to remember in battle. My mom taught me that; and she's a great medic-nin, so she'd know."

"Yeah, yeah, 'you can't just run in there guns blazing,' my dad tells me that all the time," Masaru wiped the sweat off of his face with the back of his hand, and smiled widely. "I guess I just forget."

* * *

"Well, well, you've taught him a thing or two, after all, Naruto," Kakashi said. Naruto sat in a tree overseeing the soccer field. From here, they could see both sides of the field perfectly, and were pretty sure that they were undetectable by anyone on the field level. 

"Of course I have," Naruto called from the branch he was sitting on. "It's a pride sort of thing. Unfortunately, I'm not the best that ever existed at chakara control, so Hinata helps him with that, mostly. We can't all be good at everything, right?" He rubbed the back of his head and smiled in that sheepish manner of his. "Reiko-chan's not half bad, either, Kakashi-sensei."

Kakashi, stood, leaning against the trunk of a tree opposite Naruto, crossed his arms and looked out at the field. "Well, I don't mean to brag, but you ain't seen nothing, yet."

Naruto turned his attention back to the match, where Masaru and Sasori were still fighting each other over possession of the soccer ball. Satoshi was chasing after them; he seemed to be trying to tell the other two something, but neither Masaru nor his sister was in any mood to pay attention. Reiko lingered in the goal, a bored and amused look on her face.

Masaru's Double Uzumaki Kick was the closest anyone ever got to scoring a goal. For the next fifteen minutes, Naruto and Kakashi were treated to something short of a slug fest between Masaru and Sasori. They were tearing away at each other for the ball, using all sorts of ridiculous combinations of the Bunshin no Jutsu to succeed in their goal-scoring task. All the while Satoshi followed his teammates around the field, trying to get a word in, only to be cut off.

"Masaru's not really one to listen, is he?" Kakashi taunted. "Satoshi's been trying to tell him something for the past twenty minutes."

An embarrassed scowl was stretched over Naruto's face. "Hey, hey, Kakashi-sensei, where we that unimaginably bad?"

Kakashi laughed, "Well, sort of."

"This…is painful,"

"Be patient, Naruto," Kakashi said. "You can't expect them to be perfect on their first day out of the Academy. Give them some time to get used to working in teams."

"I think Reiko's had enough, too. She's about ready to put an end to this." Naruto pointed out. Kakashi turned. Reiko twirled a kunai around on her finger a few times before flipping it and closing her hand around it. "She looks a bit angry."

Reiko gripped the kunai tightly before throwing it out into the field. It pierced through the air and stuck into the soccer ball, and ended the match. Kakashi groaned inwardly, "Hey, that soccer ball cost me good money."

* * *

The kunai flashed in the bright sun on its way toward them. There was barely enough time to register what was going on before a sharp noise cut through the air and the soccer ball deflated. 

"Eh?" Masaru looked up at Sasori, ready to call her a sore loser for popping the ball like that, but the baffled expression on the girl's face convinced him that she had about as much idea that the ball was going to pop as he did.

"That's enough!"

Both students turned. Reiko was walking toward them with a disappointed look in her eyes. "Reiko-sensei?" Sasori asked. "You did that?"

"What, are you crazy!? That could have sliced my foot off!" Masaru cried hysterically. "Why? Why would you do that?"

"I'm another shinobi," Reiko said in a hard voice. "That's reason enough to attack you." There was an air of menace around her as she strode toward them, accented by her fierce eyes. Masaru felt his legs start to shake. "In this shinobi world, the simple fact that you're alive is reason enough to be attacked."

"Why did you stop the game?" Sasori asked, trying to get her mind off the morbid subject Reiko had brought up. Her teacher stopped in front of them, hands in her pockets.

"Why did I stop the game?" Reiko threw it out like a scoff. "That wasn't a game. Hell, it was _supposed _to be a game, a little contest, if you will. But you two were killing each other over who got to kick the ball. Now, while your little stunts did little to emphasize the point of this training, it _did_ help me realize something."

"What's that?" Masaru asked.

"Your teamwork…is virtually non-existent," Reiko said in a condemning tone. "You three were supposed to work together to score that goal."

"But there's only one lunch, and that goes to the winner," Sasori said. "The rest of us have to eat natto and ramen. I don't like natto, so I decided-"

"Exactly," Reiko cut her off. "_You_ decided. But you forgot, or decided to ignore the fact, that you're not alone; have two teammates. But throwing that out the window, y_ou _decided that it was in _your_ best interest to score the goal and get the lunch so _you_ wouldn't have to eat natto – Am I right?"

Sasori stood quietly, knowing she couldn't disagree with the truth. She only nodded in response. She wished Reiko hadn't put it so harshly.

"Then there's you, Masaru," Reiko continued. "You also took the one-man team approach. I dunno what was going on in that little blond head of yours, but ­you decided that there could only be one winner, and that _just had_ to be you."

"I was –!"

"Fighting for control of the ball with one teammate and ignoring the other one," Reiko finished for him. Masaru opened his mouth to argue, but closed it when nothing good came to mind. Damn it, Reiko was right.

"Lesson number one," Reiko began. "On missions, it's not about _who_ completes it, but that it actually gets done. A ninja should complete a mission no matter what the outcome of that mission may be. Missions aren't about kicking ass and looking cool to get praise and rewards; they're about carrying out important tasks that, more often than not, could affect the safety of the village. I never want to see such selfish behavior during a mission again. Out in the real world, this could be the difference between life and death in your team."

Finished with the first half of her Kakashi-esque speech, the Jonin turned to her remaining student – the quiet Satoshi. "And you, Satoshi. What I want to know is why you stood in the middle of the field without doing anything for so long?"

"I guess I didn't have a reason to fight," he said, looking up. "I like ramen and I like natto. There was nothing for me to lose from not fighting. But then I got to thinking that since we were a team, and soccer is team sport, we should be working together."

Reiko raised her eyebrows, realizing what the boy's dilemma had been all along. She plucked the kunai out of the deflated soccer ball, twirling it in her hand casually. "You probably figured out the team work thing pretty early on, didn't you?"

"Yeah," Satoshi nodded. His voice implied he didn't know where Reiko was going with this. "It wasn't that hard."

"Still, you couldn't bring your point up," she walked in a circle around her three students; all the while, the kunai was spinning on her index finger. He didn't know it, but with that small nod, Satoshi had just confirmed her suspicion. Reiko stopped behind Sasori. "I think I know what your problem was."

"Huh?" Satoshi looked up, his legs locking into place at what he saw. Reiko tripped Sasori with a sweep kick, pressing the Genin's arms against her back with her feet. Reiko held Sasori's head down into the dirt with one hand, while holding a kunai to her neck with the other.

"Ah! Sensei, what the-!?"

"Satoshi! Kill Masaru, now! Or I'll kill your sister!"

_What?_ Satoshi's eyes grew wide, and he felt his stomach give a horrible lurch, like he had just fallen out the window of a five-story building. _No! Don't make me chose between them!_

A smile spread over Reiko's face. _I was right._ The way the boy stood, frozen in his place with a sickened look on his face was enough to tell Reiko his greatest fear: having to choose between two comrades. "Satoshi…listen to me: there will be times when you have to choose between comrades on a mission. It's one of the worse things that could ever happen, but that doesn't mean it won't happen. I can't tell you what to do in a situation like that, but you're going to have to get over that fear…soon."

"I'll protect my teammates so well, that will never happen," Satoshi said with determination. Even though he was making an attempt at calming down, Satoshi's voice still quivered. "I can't be asked to choose between two people that I care about."

Getting no pleasure out of seeing Satoshi shiver like that, Reiko stepped off of Sasori, once again twirling the kunai around. "I understand what you're saying. But sometimes there's no way out of it."

Masaru noticed a fleeting sad look cross Reiko's face. The expression was gone in the same instant it appeared, but Masaru understood. _The way she's looking into the ground like that…she's had to choose between two people before._

Reiko looked back at her students. "Lesson number two: always keep your guard up. I'm standing here, an armed ninja, and you three are standing there are relaxed as if this were a school trip. This won't do for the real world out there. You three all know that the ninja world is on the brink of war - the 4th Great Ninja War. The roads between villages are more dangerous that they have been in years, and you always have to be on your guard. _Always_. Remember this: anyone could be your enemy, even if they look like your ally."

The three students nodded, sullen looks on their young faces. _I might have taken it a bit too far with the sermon..._ Reiko thought. _But they're old enough to hear it – they need to know who things work outside the village gates. Look at me … I sound like my dad. _

"Hey, you three, wipe off those long faces. You might not have successfully completed the task, but that doesn't mean you don't get to eat lunch."

"Really?" Masaru asked. His face livened up at the mention of food.

"You have a one-track mind, don't you, Masaru-kun?" Sasori commented, earning the release of nervous, pent-up laughter from her teammates. "You never worry about anything for too long."

"Yeah, I'm taking you three out to lunch," Reiko stuck her kunai into her side pouch and slung her backpack over her shoulder. "Training's over for today. So, who's up for ramen?"

* * *

"Wow," Naruto said. "Your kid puts mine to shame." 

"Don't be modest," Kakashi said. "She's four years older than Masaru and has more years of experience under her belt. Plus, you were her teacher."

Naruto's eyebrows went up in surprise. "Thanks for the compliment, sensei, but you and Anko might have had a bit more to do with the development of her shinobi skills and personality than I did."

"That doesn't mean she didn't pick a few things up from you," Kakashi said.

"Reiko's always been more level-headed than most kids her age…but it's always surprising to hear her talk." Naruto smiled sheepishly at Kakashi. "She sounds just like you."

"Yeah, I know," Kakashi said. "It's kind of scary, actually."

"Well, I don't think Masaru could have asked for a better teacher," Naruto said. He jumped from his perch, landing silently next to Kakashi. "It will be fun to see how this turns out, won't it?"

"Heading back to the office?"

"Yeah, if I stay out any longer, then I think Yusuke will have a heart attack. I don't want to be responsible for an intern's death, you know?"

"See you around, then, Hokage-sama," Kakashi said. He was gone in a silent puff of smoke.

* * *

"Four bowls of ramen coming right up," 

"Thank you, sir!" Reiko said. She looked to the right, down the small bar in Ichiraku Ramen, smiling at her students. "I'm buying, so be polite and eat what they give you."

"What we do for politeness," Masaru mumbled. He was less than happy to be sitting in Ichiraku, the one place his dad could never get away from. _What's so good about ramen, anyway?_

As Masaru fumed, Satoshi and Sasori laughed. Sasori had been lucky and gotten out of eating natto, for the time being, that is. Reiko had promised that next time she took them out for something: it would be sweets and natto.

"Stop laughing," Masaru said. He crossed his arms over his chest. "It's not fair. The only reason Sasori-chan got out of eating natto was because Reiko-sensei had to meet a friend here at Ichiraku."

From the other side of the bar, on Reiko's left, a young man waved. "Sorry 'bout that, Masaru-kun."

"Hey, hey, what is he, like, your boyfriend, or something?" Masaru asked Reiko. The question only made the two older teens burst out laughing. Masaru shared a confused look with his teammates. "What did I say?"

"Arashi's not my boyfriend, Masaru-kun," Reiko said through a laugh. "He's a friend, well, my best friend. But, last I heard, we weren't dating."

"Then what are you doing eating lunch together?" Sasori asked in that nosy pre-teen girl kind of way. She eyed them slyly.

"What? Can't two good friends eat together once in a while?" Arashi said. "Or is that considered dating now?"

* * *

_Ladies and Gentlemen: my best friend, Sarutobi Arashi. Son of Asuma and Kurenai Sarutobi. The kid's the closest thing I have to a brother, and in that sibling sort of way, I love him to death._

_He idolizes Nara Shikamaru-sensei, and tends to follow him around like a puppy. Of course, I can't blame him – Shikamaru-sensei is sort of like his father. You see, Asuma-sensei died before Arashi was born, and I guess Shikamaru made Kurenai-sensei a promise that he would be there for their kid. And so far, he has been. Shikamaru-sensei even taught him how to play shoji…and Arashi can kick my ass at it. _

_Arashi's a year younger than I am, but we get along pretty damn well. He's a Chunin currently, but he's taking the Jonin exam over the summer. Even though his rank is technically 'Chunin', Arashi can whip up some incredible Jonin-level Jutsu. He's one of the Chunin I sometimes pray get assigned to me on a mission, because I know I can count on him._

_For as long as I can remember, people have been teasing us about liking each other. It used to piss us off when we were younger, but now we just laugh at people who assume those kinds of things. Sure, he's relatively good looking: he's tall and has spiked black hair and weird eyes like his mom. And he's really a great guy, but…we're not those kinds of friends, you know?

* * *

_

"Here you go," the owner said. He placed five bowls of steaming ramen in front of his customers before going off into the back of the store. "Enjoy. I'll be in the back if you kids need anything."

"Thanks," Reiko said. She split her chopsticks and dipped them into her ramen eagerly. "Eat up, you three. Tomorrow's going to be a tough day." The three Genin began eating, Masaru less eagerly than the Uchiha twins, but he was eating anyway.

"So, your last mission any fun?" Reiko asked through a mouthful of ramen.

"It was okay," Arashi responded. "It went on longer than I would have liked it to go…they told us three days tops; we were there for a week."

"Find out anything good?" Reiko asked. Arashi nodded at Reiko's three charges down the bar, indicating that whatever he had to say wasn't for Genin ears.

"Not really," he said, shrugging. "I did notice that the roads have gotten loads more unsafe. We were ambushed three times before we even made it out of the Fire Country – and it's supposed to be friendly territory."

The curtain went up behind them, and a voice Reiko could have gone another day without hearing rang into the small establishment. "Well, well, if it isn't my favorite little bastard." The voice was mean, full of spite.

Both Rieko and Arashi exchanged annoyed looks over their ramen. The owner of the voice, a young Jonin by the name of Kenosuke, leaned into the bar, stepping between Reiko and Sasori. He stared at Reiko and Arashi with mean eyes.

"Bastard, Kenosuke? That got old in like the second grade," Reiko said. She didn't bother to turn around, or even to put down her chopsticks. She turned casually to Arashi. "Do you have any idea why this guy can't get over the fact that my parents aren't married?"

"Damned if I know," Arashi said. He shrugged innocently and continued eating his ramen. After an exaggerated swallow, he added, "It could have something to do with the giant stick he has up his ass."

"What was that?" Kenosuke snarled.

"Piss off, Kenosuke," Arashi warned. "We're trying to enjoy our lunch, here."

"And what if I don't feel like it, huh?" He slammed his hand down on the counter. "What are you gonna do, faggot-face? Run home to mommy? Tell her a big kid was being mean to you?"

"Always brining his mother into the conversation," Reiko said, she smirked. "I swear you're obsessed or something." Arashi chuckled beside her.

"Ooh, faggot," Kenosuke teased. "Are you gonna let this girl fight your battles for you? Is that what mommy told you to do? She told you not to fight, didn't she? That's why your old man kicked it, he couldn't fight worth shit."

Arashi's chopsticks snapped in his hands. He tensed up, trying for all the world to ignore the comment. "You wanna run that by me again?"

"Arashi-kun…" Reiko gripped her friend's sleeve in warning. "He's not worth it, man…you know that."

Kenosuke smiled. "Haha…just like I thought. You don't fight back." He turned to leave the ramen bar. "Oh, and bastard, say 'hello' to your slut of a mother for me, will ya?"

In an incredibly hypocritical move, Reiko bolted from her stool. "You-!" She grabbed Kenosuke's shoulder, turning him to facer her, and rammed her fist into his surprised face. The boy groaned and fell backward onto the floor.

"Reiko-sensei…" Masaru whispered weakly. He looked at Satoshi and Sasori for some sort of clarification as to what the hell they had just witnessed. Both siblings sat side-by-side, their faces blank and expressionless; needless to say that neither of them could offer Masaru any sort of answer.

Reiko bent down and grabbed the front of Kenosuke's now blood-stained uniform shirt. "Hehe…you're really one to talk you know that? Listen pal, my mom may not be married, but I know for a fact that she's not screwing everyone who knocks on the door…which is more than I can say for _your _mother. So don't _ever _let me hear that kind of bullshit coming out of your mouth again."

"Reiko," Arashi complained.

"You'd might as well," Reiko sighed.

A devilish smile spread over Arashi's face as he stepped on Kenosuke's chest, and leaned down. "You wanna talk about fathers? Yeah, man, my dad's dead…he died fighting some sick bastard fifteen years ago. But for what it's worth, at least he's not screwing the milkman's wife." With a chuckle, Arashi slapped Kenosuke's cheek lightly before stepping over the boy's prone form.

Reiko's fist was still shaking from the sudden rush she'd just gotten. She looked up at her three students; their awestruck faces were staring up at her in something mixed between amazement, fear, and disbelief. She sighed, digging her hand into her pockets. "Right, ninja lesson number…whatever we're on: never lose your cool when an enemy taunts you."

With that, Reiko slapped enough money to pay for the four bowls of ramen on the counter and walked out of the bar. Arashi paid for his own ramen and followed her of the restaurant. "You're so selfish, Reiko-chan…"

"He crossed the line," Reiko said. "That little…" As the pair walked away, their voices faded into the noon crowd.

The three Genin remained at Ichiraku, not sure if they should have spoken up during the encounter or not. Masaru was the first to snap back. "Hey, hey…Sasori-chan, what the hell was that all about?"

Sasori looked from the two empty places at the bar to the unconscious Jonin lying on the floor. "I honestly have no idea what just happened here. But that guy was mean…and he deserved what he got."

"Reiko-sensei really put him in his place, didn't she?"

"Both of them did," Sasori muttered. In a daze, she turned back to her ramen and began eating slowly, almost as if not really taking in the fact of what she was doing. Masaru, seeming to forget for a minute that he didn't like ramen, also continued to eat his meal while his mind wandered.

Satoshi stared quietly at the two abandoned bowls of ramen, steam still rising from them. The way the kid had just started bothering Rieko and Arashi for no reason made him feel kind of sad. It was all violence nowadays, wasn't it? During their training session, Reiko had said that the simple fact of being alive was enough for another ninja to attack you, but he didn't think something like that would happen between ninja of the same village. As he set his attention back to his own ramen, Satoshi sighed sadly, "I think…when you're a ninja, you have lots of enemies."

* * *

**Alright, so that was that! Hope you liked it. Please read and review!**

**-Greeneyesstaring**


	3. Scrolls of Warning! A Planned Attack?

**Hiyas!!! Greeneyes here! It looks like this fic's gotten a lot of hits over the course of its being up here, which is good. But dude, no reviews? Wazzup with that? Please, please review after you read. Remember: it's your comments that help me make this better!!!**

**And, of course, disclaimer: I do not own Nartuo, and I probably never will. **

**Now that that's over and done with, let's move onward! **

**To the chapter!!!! **

* * *

Chapter Three:

Arashi dragged Reiko through the crowded noon streets. He hated seeing Reiko angry. Most of the time, she was a laid back and mellow person, keeping her cool through some of the most tense situations. It took a lot of poking and prodding to make Reiko lose her cool; so when she _did_ get mad, it was something to be very, very afraid of.

Reiko was still fuming, mumbling every curse and swear word in the book under her breath. Arashi knew from years of being her friend that Reiko didn't mind being insulted, so long as the insults stayed directed at her. Touch her parents, and it was another story all together. She had gotten into many a fight with students at the Academy, Kenosuke in particular, for hearing them bash her parents verbally. Arashi could understand it, but tried to get her mind off of it as soon as possible.

"So, how was your first day of training?"

Reiko scoffed loudly. "Not too bad. They seem to have a good handle on basic ninjutsu - but, we have a lot of work to do if those three ever want to be decent Chunin."

"No teamwork skills, then?" Arashi guessed. It wasn't uncommon for fresh-out-of-the-Academy Genin to be selfish. It's not that they did it on purpose; it's just that young Genin were usually so caught up with finally being an official, recognized shinobi that they couldn't wait to show off their skills. Arashi, having been told off on more than one occasion by his mentors for lacking in the teamwork department, understood why self-centered students did nothing but give instructors grey hairs.

"They'll learn," Reiko said. "We're going to be taking missions starting next week, so if that doesn't snap them into teamwork mode, nothing will. I think I lucked out, though. They look like smart kids."

"Of course they are," Arashi said. "You have the offspring of the past generation's greatest ninja in your team. I'd say you're in for a wild ride."

"Whoop dee doo," Reiko said in a voice that disagreed with her choice of words. "I can't wait."

They walked on, eventually coming to an apartment building. Arashi led the way to the last floor, where he and his mother lived. He opened the door to the apartment, allowing Reiko to go in first.

"Is Kurenai-obasan home?" Reiko asked, taking a look around the dark apartment.

"Nope, she's on some mission or other," Arashi said. "You want something to drink? Or eat? You left Ichiraku without finishing your ramen."

"Nah, I wasn't really hungry anyway," Reiko said, settling onto the couch. Arashi shook his head, knowing full well Reiko was probably still starving. He poured her a glass of water and set a plate of crackers in front of her, anyway. "So, what did you find out on this mission that my Genin couldn't hear?"

"Oh, that," Arashi said. He sat down on a seat opposite Reiko and took a look around the apartment before talking. "I think the Hidden Mist might be closer to attacking the village than Hokage-sama thinks."

"What made you think that?" Reiko took a casual bite of a cracker. "Did any of them say anything?"

"You remember I said that the roads were getting a lot more unsafe?"

"Yeah, but crimes on the roads around Konoha have been on the rise for the past two years. How exactly is this news?"

Arashi raised a finger, as if to make a point, "We were attacked three times before leaving the Fire Country, and all three times, they were ninja from the Hidden Mist." He dug something out of his back pouch. It was a small scroll. The boarders around the scroll were blue – attack plans. "One of the Hidden Mist ninja dropped this. They ran away without realizing it was gone."

He placed the scroll on the table and spread it out before Reiko, who made sure to take the cracker plate into her lap lest the scroll knock it over. Her eyes went up in surprise of the document, "It's a map of the Fire Country"

"Not just any map," Arashi warned. "Take a closer look."

Reiko obliged, studying the map further. There was a circle in the middle of the scroll, scratchy writing spelled out "Konoha" in the center of the circle. All around the labeled circle was a green area and a few blue spaces and lines – the forest around the village with its lakes and rivers. Red dots were plotted in some parts of the map. Something caught in Reiko's throat. "Arashi…these are…"

"Yeah," he said. "It's a plan showing where they have their ninja stationed around the village." He tapped three dots on the paper. "We were attacked along this route, at all three points – consecutively. That's about fifty miles away from the village at the first point. They're getting closer…the latest reports from Hidden Mist attacks stated they were at least two hundred miles back. They were obviously wrong."

"And there's a shitload of them," Reiko said. "Who knows how many ninja each dot represents…they could have hundreds of shinobi ready for attack." Reiko looked at Arashi. "Have you shown this to Naruto-sama yet?"

"I went to his office the second we got back," Arashi said. "He wasn't there. The little intern guy that went to look for him was getting all worked up, so I just left. I'll go by later…but this is bad, Reiko; things are heating up too fast."

"Don't panic yet," Reiko said. She sat back on the couch, blowing her bangs out of her face – this meant she was thinking deeply about something. "Hidden Mist is not all that powerful. We have the home field advantage here in the forest; don't forget that. They don't know we have the map…or maybe they do, I dunno. But if we know the location of each of their stations, then this battle is ours. Don't sweat it yet, we still have a chance."

"I'm going to go see Naruto-sama in thirty minutes," Arashi said. He rolled the scroll back into its neat form and put it back in his pouch. "You wanna hang out here and come with me later, or do you have something to do?"

"Not a damn thing," Reiko said. She crossed her arms over her chest and put her legs up on the couch. "Wake me up in thirty minutes; will you, Arashi-kun? I didn't really sleep well last night."

"Why am I not surprised to hear that?"

"I dunno," Reiko said through a quiet mumble. "You must be psychic or something."

"Just don't drool on the couch; my Mom just got it re-upholstered." The warning was pointless, Arashi realized the second he turned back around. Reiko was already snoring away. The boy smiled, shaking his head. He took a book from a shelf in the living room and sat down in the seat opposite Reiko. He began to read, occasionally checking to see that his friend wasn't gushing all over the couch.

* * *

In the orange afternoon light that filtered through the thick trees, Anko made her way out of the Forest of Death. After another day at working hard to set up the upcoming Chunin Exams, she couldn't be happier to be on her way home. ­She soared from tree limb to tree limb with ease, eager to be out of the forest. 

The set up for the Chunin Exams was always a real hassle; everything had to be perfect and ready to go at any moment. Ever since the infiltration of Orochimaru into the Exams eighteen years previously, security on the outskirts of the Forest had been beefed up considerably to ensure the safety of the competitors. And with the Great War threat hanging over Konoha, extra measures had to be taken.

Anko couldn't wait for the exams to start again – that would make things one hell of a lot less boring than they were now. She loved seeing the scared looks of the new students when she told them about release forms – that look was always priceless.

She sped along the trees, keeping an eye out for anything. The trip from the tower to the gates was a forty minute run, but Anko tended to take a little longer because she lingered in some areas just to make sure all of the equipment was working.

_The hell-?_ Something rushed past on the ground below her. Anko dug her heels into the bark of the tree, screeching to a stop, and turned around. Without pausing, she began heading in the direction the figure had run off in. Who was running around in _here_? She was supposed to be the only one left in the forest, the rest of the proctors had left the tower an hour before. She tapped the earpiece lodged in her left ear. "Anyone in range?"

A deep voice crackled into the speakers, "Copy that, Anko. This is Aburame Shino."

"Right, listen, get me a headcount on the number of proctors left in the forest," she said. Her pace quickened. _Please let me be imagining things._

"You're the only one left, Anko," Shino responded half a minute later. "The rest are so far gone, they're out of range. Why, are we missing someone?"

"No," she said. She heard a rustle somewhere up ahead, and followed the sound into a small clearing. Her eyes darted around, checking the branches and bushes. "I'm the last one out today, and I'm going to lock up, so I was just checking if anyone was still in here."

"I'll be out in about five minutes," Shino said. "You're the last one. How far back are you?"

"Don't bother waiting, I'll be at least another twenty minutes," Anko responded. "Thanks, Shino." She switched the microphone off. There was another rustle behind her. C_rap, there it is again._ Anko sprang to the nearest branch, keeping quiet. Across from her, something rustled again. _Whoever they are, they suck at sneaking around. _

Anko drew a kunai and flung it easily into the bushes where the noise had come from. A dull _pop_ came in the direction the kunai had landed in, and Anko cursed. Something rushed at her from below, but the elite Jonin wasn't going to be caught off guard by that. She leapt from the branch, sending a barrage of senbon needles into the foliage.

There was a loud groan, and Anko smiled as the shinobi gave its position away. She landed on an opposite branch, and extended her hand – "Striking Snake No Jutsu!"

Three snake heads erupted from her sleeve, shooting toward her opponent in the leaves. A scream came from whatever was hiding in there as the heads closed around something. _Gotcha, bitch!_

Anko pulled her arm back, and a young ninja fell out onto the ground, screaming at the sight of the three snake heads. Without releasing the jutsu, Anko landed next to the squirming intruder. She brought him up to her eye level with the snakes. He was squirming madly. Anko shook her head, as if her captive where a disobedient child. "Man, you suck at this."

His face was a mask of fear, pale like nothing else. Anko's senbon needles stuck out in his shoulders and arms. He must have been new at this. "Don't kill me! Please!"

Anko's features tightened into a smirk, "Don't worry 'bout that, kiddo. I'm not the one who takes care of killing intruders. My job is to torture them until they lose their minds." Anko twirled her arm, making the snake binds slither tighter around the boy. He began screaming again, wiggling to get away from the snapping heads. "Don't move around so much, they'll get agitated."

"Please," the young man whined.

"How many of you are there?" Anko said. "Tell me!"

"Me! Just me! I swear!" He tried to keep from wriggling too much, and never took his eyes off of the hissing heads serpent heads. "I was sent to investigate the area."

"By whom?"

"My squad commander!" Boy, this kid was no good under interrogation. Anko wasn't even trying to scare him; he was doing that to himself. In any event, she feared he might have a heart attack and die before she got through with a basic interrogation. Was it even possible to turn that shade of white while still alive?

"Where is he stationed?" Anko asked in a menacing tone. _Don't overdo it, Anko. This kid has nerves like jumping beans – always fidgeting. _

"I don't know; we split up!" The kid was on the verge of tears. Who the hell told him he could become a ninja? When Anko frowned at his response, his eyes grew even wider. "Please, you have to believe me! They never told me where they were going! You have to believe me!"

"Alright, alright, I believe you," Anko said. "Just shut up, already." _Geez this kid is irritating! He's gotta grow some balls before they send him on another solo mission. _She waved her fingers at him, "Now, sleep tight." Anko snapped her fingers, and one of the snake heads sunk its fangs into the boy's neck.

He yelped, his eyes growing wide with incredible fear and realization as the sleeping agent soaked into his veins and began coursing through his body. He fell asleep in seconds, his limp body dropping to the ground as soon as the jutsu was released. Shaking her head, Anko slumped the unconscious boy onto her back and took off at a run toward the exit.

* * *

The sun had finished setting, and a clear night sky spread out above Konoha. The pale moon bore down on the Hokage monuments, giving their eyes an eerie air of life. Below them was the roof to the Hokage's office. The lights were on, and anyone who took a peek in would see that the mood in the office was all too serious. 

Nara Shikamaru, Konoha's number one tactical advisor, stood at the front of desk, arms over his chest. Next to him, stood Uchiha Sasuke, wearing his ANBU captain uniform, but letting his mask hang from a clip on his belt. Sakura (now Uchiha Sakura, thank you very much and take that, Ino), also stood with them.

Facing the small group was Naruto, an uncharacteristic frown on his usually jovial face. "I don't know how to take this, really, I don't." Naruto's mind was still racing. It had been a few hours since Arashi and Reiko had shown up with the scroll from the Hidden Mist. After a rather lengthy conversation with them, Naruto had sent the two teens away with the advice to keep on their toes on their way back home. _The ANBU team will be able to take care of this, don't worry._ That's what he'd assured them, but now, he wasn't so sure.

"Here's the deal," Shikamaru said. Apart from a growth spurt, and a more rugged look, Shikamaru hadn't changed at all with the years. He was still that incredibly lazy know-it-all smart-ass that never failed to come through with genius tactics. "This map shows the resting stations of every group of Hidden Mist ninja that are hiding in the Fire Country, presumably to strike against Konoha. Before now, our intelligence collecting ninja teams had only been able to find half of the spots on this map – now, we have them all."

"I say we launch an attack tonight," Sasuke said.

"I don't think that might be the best idea," Shikamaru countered. Always like him to be three steps ahead of everyone. "If you ask me, this map is a little too good to be true. It has occurred to me this might be a trap. The ninja could have dropped the map on purpose to trick us. The red dots could indicate places where the Hidden Mist Ninja are hiding, ready to ambush any Leaf ninja that come near."

"We'll take them anyway,"

"Shut up, Sasuke," Naruto growled. "You think it's that easy? What if the Hidden Mist is not planning on attacking? If I give the order to attack, and for whatever reason the ANBU team can't wipe every single ninja out, the word will spread to the Village of the Hidden Mist. If that happens, then maybe the entire Village will decide to launch an attack. We could solely be responsible for lighting the flame that will become the fire that is the Great Ninja War." He paused. His fists were shaking, and his voice was rasping like it did when he was agitated or angry at himself. "I-I don't think I could handle that."

Sakura rested a hand on Sasuke's shoulder. "I think I'm siding with Naruto on this one. The Hidden Mist might not be planning on attacking at all. I'd suggest putting the Village on high alert tonight and see what happens."

Sasuke scoffed, but nodded. He didn't like seeing Naruto so shaken up. As he stood there, shaking with insecurity and doubt, Sasuke was reminded of the many occasions Naruto had stood that way as a boy. During their encounters, Naruto would stand like that, head down and arms at his sides, then make a powerful promise. An odd feeling of nostalgia crept over the older Uchiha, and he sighed. "I'll assemble the ANBU along the Village walls. And personally guard the front gates."

"No," Naruto said. He lifted his head and placed a hand firmly on his desk. "I'll guard the front gate. I _am _Hokage after all. Sasuke disperse your teams wisely. I want you guarding the West entrance to the village – the one Itachi used to sneak in back then. I'll get some extra Jonin to the entrance points and lookout towers, doubling the night guards. Sakura, go home, but be on alert in case any medical help is needed. Shikamaru, thanks for your help."

"Alright," Shikamaru said. "My work here is done. If anything strategic comes up, you know where to find me." He bowed his respects and headed out of the office.

Naruto nodded at his two best friends. "Alright, you guys know what to do. If nothing happens during the night, then I'll see you in here tomorrow morning. If we have an invasion, then..."

Sasuke unclipped his mask and threw the hood of his ANBU jacket over his head. "I'll see you two in the morning, then." He gave Sakura a little peck on the cheek before donning his mask and leaving the room.

"He takes his job as ANBU captain very seriously, doesn't he?" Naruto commented. Reaching behind his chair, he threw his white coat with the fire character on.

"You know Sasuke," Sakura said. A sad look came over her face. "Always ready to show he really is sorry for all that he did back then. What better way to prove it then by protecting the village he tried to destroy?"

"Sounds like him," Naruto sighed. The wide-brimmed Hokage hat hid the bittersweet look in Naruto's eyes as he wondered about the old and new Sasuke. So many things had changed in the sole surviving member of the Uchiha clan, but Naruto was glad that their friendship was, although awkward at times, still strong. "Let's get going, Sakura."

"Right,"

* * *

Despite what Naruto had told her about keeping alert during the night, Reiko was fast asleep by ten that night. She breathed easily, her head covered with a book she'd been reading before she fell asleep. Her desk light was still on. 

Anko walked into the girl's room, as usual to turn off the raging stereo Reiko played at night to lull herself to sleep. She tuned the music out slowly, knowing that an abrupt end in the noise flow would cause Reiko to wake up. As the current song reached its slow end, Anko took the book from Reiko's face, closed it, and put in neatly on the desk.

Like any concerned parent, Anko fixed the pillow behind Reiko's head so that she wouldn't twist her neck and began fretting over the things littered on the floor.

The girl stirred, turning over on her side, her face to the wall. She didn't wake up, didn't even seem to notice Anko's presence. "If you wake her up, you know she won't be able to fall asleep again. And that's just mean."

"You're the one who's talking loudly," Anko hissed. "If she wakes up, I'm holding you responsible." Carefully, Anko tucked the blankets in around Reiko's shoulders before turning to leave the room.

Kakashi leaned on the door frame, watching Reiko sleep. "It's kind of odd for her to be asleep this early."

"She didn't sleep last night," Anko said, turning to see Reiko. A familiar yet unsettling feeling fluttered into the pit of her stomach. A sigh of sorts escaped her lips, and Anko found herself leaning into Kakashi's shoulder. "You know, Kakashi, I get an odd feeling when I see her resting peacefully."

He gently wrapped an arm around Anko, hugging her closer to him. He understood what she was talking about, yet he decided to play dumb, "A feeling? Like what?"

"I don't think I can explain it," Anko said. "I can't help but think, when I look at her sometimes, how amazing this all is, you know?" She paused. "I don't mean for it to sound corny or anything, but when I stop to think about it, I realize 'wow, that's our daughter right there.' I never would have imagined that I would end up living like this – with you, with Reiko. It sometimes feels rather surreal to me."

Kakashi smiled behind his mask. He tightened his hug around Anko, resting his head on top of hers. "There have been times when I sit and wonder how my life ended up like this. So many things have happened to end up at this moment right here in time. But in the end, I realize that it doesn't matter as long as I'm happy. And I _am_ happy. I'm happier than I've been in a long time. I have comrades that I can trust, such as I haven't had since I was a kid; a talented daughter that I'm proud of and love very much; and I have you."

He sighed, "This is gonna sounds really cheesy, but I realize that I have something that I would give up for anything in the world; I have a family."

"A family," Anko repeated. She slid the door to Reiko's room shut, leaving Kakashi and herself in a dimly-lit hallway. "Maybe that's what this is. It's a feeling of family. Hmph, even after all these years, I'm not entirely used to feeling like this. But I have to admit, family sure as hell feels good."

With that, she slipped into their bedroom. Kakashi sighed, walking in after her. The room, slightly bigger than Reiko's, was neatly organized. In one corner was a shelf with scrolls of various jutsu, books on ninja tools, and crammed onto the bottom shelf, Kakashi's completed collection of his favorite book series Icha-Icha Paradise. Their bed sat in the middle of the room, two nightstands on either side. On Anko's nightstand were a few picture frames, each illustrating a few years of Reiko's life. It was a moderately empty, yet tastefully decorated bedroom.

"You know, I went to see her training today," Kakashi said. He sat down on the bed, as Anko started putting on pajamas.

"How'd it go?" Anko threw one of Kakashi's older Jonin uniform shirts over head. "Is she a good teacher?"

"Imagine my discipline mixed with your impulsiveness," Kakashi muttered. He dug a shirt out from under his pillow, along with a pair of pants he wore to sleep.

"That must have been one hell of a show," Anko said, smiling. Now dressed in a pair of light blue boxers and Kakashi's shirt, she flopped onto the bed. "But I've been on a mission or two with Reiko. And I've gotta say, her skills are something to be careful of."

Kakashi got into the covers, and leaned back against the headboard. "I look at her sometimes and I think to myself, 'wow…that's an amazing kunoichi right there. Skills, wit, and a personality to match'. And then it really sinks in when I realize that it's our daughter I'm looking at."

Anko smiled as sat up next to him. Kakashi turned, staring into her eyes. He could only smile back under his mask. He nodded, "What are you thinking about?"

Instead of supplying an answer, Anko traced the faint outline of Kakashi's face with her fingers. She played with the seam of his mask for a minute, tracing its outline on Kakashi's face until she dragged the side down. Kakashi didn't fight the sudden move; it's not like it mattered around Anko, anyway. The mask fell below his nose, but his mouth remained covered. She gave him a kiss on the cheek and slowly pulled his mask back up. Smiling, Anko turned over and wrapped the blankets around her shoulders.

"You're a hopeless romantic, Kakashi. But that's part of why I love you."

* * *

On the walls surrounding Konohakagure, the person stood lightly. Its figure was silhouetted by the white light of the crescent moon above. Its ANBU robes fluttered lightly with the late night breeze. Under its white mask, a smile was spread over its face. 

_Stupid Konoha Jonin…it was all too easy to infiltrate into this place. They think they're superior, but they don't know shit. They never even suspected me. This is all to easy. _

Crouching on top of the wall, looking out into the forest where its comrades were waiting to attack, the figure began to prepare. Beneath its robes, its fingers ran across the surface of a scroll. The scroll that would mark the beginning of the plan. It smiled again in some sort of sick pleasure. This would be a very fun night.

A very fun night indeed.

* * *

**Ha! There, you thought it would end on that light, buttery note, didn't you? But it didn't! Well, I swear the story will pick up from here. So, read and review, will ya?? Will ya, please? Hell, I won't beg. Review!!!**

**-Greeneyesstaring**


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